By: Sara Fischer – KTEN – The Biden Administration has called on OPEC to increase oil production, citing high gas prices as the reason, and saying if prices stay as high as they are, it will delay the global economy’s recovery from COVID-19.
OPEC controls more than 50% of the world’s supply of crude oil.
“Their decisions to raise prices or lower production really impact the price of crude oil here in the United States,” Brad Douglass, CEO of Douglass Distributing, said.
The U.S. alone is responsible for producing 20 percent of the world’s crude oil but consumes more than that each year.
Although OPEC has previously agreed to ramp up production, the Biden Administration is calling for an even larger increase.
That increase would lower prices and ultimately benefit the consumer.
“If OPEC increases production by 400,00 barrels a day, that will increase supply and then will decrease the seeing price for crude oil,” Douglass said. “States like Texas and Oklahoma who are producing crude oil are really enjoying these higher prices and don’t want to see that happen.”
This action has been met with criticism from GOP lawmakers.
“While our Oklahoma workers are willing and able to produce oil here locally, instead he’s asking our enemies to produce oil, it’s just preposterous,” Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt said during an exclusive interview with KTEN.
Oklahoma Senators James Lankford and Jim Inhofe led a letter to President Biden, with 22 other U.S. Senators signing on, calling for President Biden to reverse his request, saying in part:
“We agree with your intent to reduce the cost of gas for hardworking Americans, but your domestic policy agenda has proven to have the opposite effect and continues to threaten American jobs and family budgets.”
OPEC is meeting Wednesday to discuss whether or not they will be agreeing to President Biden’s request.
